


Building a Home Together

by Nerdy_fangirl_57



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alpha Derek, Beta Stiles Stilinski, Derek Hale is Bad at Feelings, Getting Together, Inspired by Fanart, M/M, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Oblivious Stiles, POV Alternating, Protective Derek, Sheriff Stilinski Knows, Sterek Reverse Bang 2017, Werebunny Stiles, Werecreature Stiles, canonical elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-19
Updated: 2017-06-19
Packaged: 2018-11-15 23:25:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11241459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nerdy_fangirl_57/pseuds/Nerdy_fangirl_57
Summary: Stiles thought he'd never feel as guilty as he did the day he found out Scott had been bitten by a rogue alpha werewolf, little did he know things would only get worse as the struggle to keep his secret from his best friends drags on.Then Derek Hale gets thrown into the mix, because of course he does.





	Building a Home Together

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was written for Sterek Reverse Bang 2017 with the wonderful art work of @beerwolves. This was so fun to write and I really hope you guys enjoy :)

Stiles doesn't know what to do.

Ever since he figured out Scott was turned into a werewolf after they sneaked into the preserve, Stiles has been a raging ball of guilt.

His best friend, his completely oblivious _human_ best friend, was attacked by a rogue alpha werewolf and turned into a werewolf himself against his will- with no knowledge about the supernatural world all because Stiles wanted to see a dead body.

Well, half of a dead body, but that’s not the point.

The point is Scott got turned into a werewolf because of Stiles’ inability to follow directions. His father specifically told him _not_ to go out of the house and what does he do?

Goes out of the freaking house!

So, yeah, Scott being a werewolf is all Stiles’ fault and he is going to make damn sure he helps Scott through it in every way he can.

He just… you know… has to tell Scott about how his new wolfy abilities aren't all sunshine and rainbows like he seems to believe. Which means talking about hunters and other supernatural creatures who may or may not get along very well with werewolves.

That’ll be a nice chat.

Especially since Scott is dead set on going out with this Allison girl and she reeks of hunter from deep within her pores.

She might not be a hunter herself - she seems too trusting to be a hunter - but her family sure is and if Stiles knows anything about the Argent family, it’s that there is no way in hell they’ll let one of their own associate themselves with a supernatural creature - especially a werewolf - unless it’s for the sole purpose of killing them.

So if any of them even get the sneaking suspicion that Scott might not be entirely human, he's as good as dead.

So, yeah, Stiles isn’t the president of the Scott and Allison fan club but he has a good reason damn it!

He doesn’t want to wake up a month from today and find his best friend dead on the ground somewhere like a dog. The Argents are known to be cold and meticulous for a reason, they claim to follow the code but very few of them actually give a damn about the werewolves they’re assassinating.

Werewolves are just mindless beasts to them and Stiles would rather die than live in a world in which he lost his best friend to those monsters.

He needs to make sure that Scott knows how to control his new abilities, he knows he does, but the last time he tried to tell Scott he got wolfy powers the teen passed it off as some kind of joke, which seriously, what the fuck Scott?

If Scott would actually listen to what Stiles says instead of getting distracted by his all consuming thoughts of the pretty brunette, everything would be so much easier.

Then there’s the whole Derek issue.

Stiles has no idea why but ever since their little encounter in the preserve the werewolf has been giving Stiles the murderous eyebrows of death! Stiles didn’t even do anything wrong!

Sure, he might have trespassed on the guy’s territory and gotten him arrested for the murder of his sister but that’s no reason to warrant murder okay? Stiles should know, his dad’s the sheriff.

But seriously, Derek Hale is sending Stiles’ creeper detector into overdrive. It’s not natural to look so murderous all the time.

When Stiles gets home from yet another insanely long day of watching Scott and Allison make heart eyes at each other, he practically collapses onto his desk chair with relief of finally getting a chance to breathe without the overwhelming chemicals of teenage lust.

Only to then instantly panic when the scent of the Big Bad Wolf himself infiltrates his nose.

“Dude! What the fuck? I thought we were done with the whole sneaking into my room like a serial killer thing!”

Derek rolls his eyes. “Don’t call me dude.”

Stiles stares at him, speechless, as his arms flail around him in an attempt to convey the level of _what the actual fuck_ he is experiencing right now.

“I’m not hallucinating right? This conversation is actually happening. That was your legitimate response to what I said.”

A moment of silence passes between them before Stiles finally shakes his head in exasperation. “Alright then, nice to see you have your priorities straight big guy.”

“ _Stiles_.”

Wow. Stiles didn’t think that someone could actually _growl_ out his name but, then again, that’s Derek Hale for you. Always one step ahead of the crowd.

“Fine, I’ll stop talking.” Stiles relents. “So what brings you to casa de Stilinski? I’m guessing it’s not just the great company?”

Derek glares at him so hard his eyebrows become one and, whoa, talk about terrifying. “Scott. The full moon is on Friday.”

The sigh that escapes Stiles’ lips can only be described as overdramatic. “I should have known you were only here for my werewolf best friend.”

The werewolf ignores his comment entirely. “What are you going to do?”

“What?”

“On Friday.” Derek clarifies. “During the full moon. What are you going to do?”

Stiles shrugs. “Scott is dragging me to a party against my will.”

Stiles would be lying if he said the thundering growl that followed was surprising. Derek might be a bit on the dramatic side but he’s fairly predictable in his presentation.

Still a nice view though.

A very nice view… a very nice view with a stupidly perfect face that Stiles wants to punch. In the lips. With his lips.

“Scott can’t go to a party on the full moon! Let alone his first full moon!”

Well that snapped Stiles out of his daze. Nothing like the reminder of a friend’s eminent doom to help zap a teenage boy back into focus from a very frustrating sexual revelation.

“You think I don’t know that? I tried to convince him _not_ to go and he just pushed me up against the wall and accused me of wanting to ruin his life. Speaking of which you two should stop hanging out together so much, you’re a bad influence on him.”

Instead of responding like a normal person Derek simply raises his judgy eyebrows and gives Stiles the stare that illustrates just how much of an idiot Derek thinks he is.

Someone should give Stiles a fucking medal for being so fluent in Derek’s eyebrow language.

“Don’t give me that look who else could he have learned it from? It’s not like I have a line of people waiting to push me up against the wall.”

Only more silence and judgmental eyebrows follow.

Stiles groans in frustration. “You know if you’re just going to stand in my room and give me your murder brows of doom I’d greatly appreciate it if you’d leave. I like to keep my room a safe place where no judgment is tolerated so you and your opinionated eyebrows are free to-”

Then Derek pushes him into the wall. Awesome.

“Stiles.” He says between gritted teeth. “Just, shut up.”

Stiles has never nodded his head faster in his entire life. “Yeah, sure, no problem. Anything you say Derek old pal!”

The werewolf growls in annoyance and Stiles suddenly doesn’t want to have his face so close to those slightly elongated teeth.

“Shutting up.”

Derek doesn’t move and it’s awkward as fuck because he’s so damn _close_! Seriously doesn’t the dude have any sense of personal space? He’s so close Stiles can feel his breath and doesn’t that just do wonders for his poor 17 year old possibly not heterosexual virgin ass.

Then the werewolf is finally backing up and giving Stiles some room to breathe.

Derek suddenly offers his hand to Stiles. “Phone.”

Stiles blinks. “What?”

The eye roll he gets is so dramatic it should have its own TV show. “Your phone. To get your phone number.”

And he’s officially lost. “Why do you need my phone number?”

“So you can tell me when Scott is doing something stupid.”

Stiles scrunches up his nose in confusion. “Why would I tell you that?”

“So I can show up and _fix it_ before he does something _really_ stupid that can get him killed.”

It takes a moment for Stiles to react.

“Oh.”

Derek glares.

Suddenly realizing he’s been staring at Derek for nearly a minute Stiles scurries to dislodge his phone from his pocket and practically throws it at the older were. A moment later Derek returns the phone with a grunt and promptly climbs out the window.

Stiles doesn’t know what the fuck just happened but when he looks down at his phone he sees a new number on his contacts listed as Derek.

Stiles innocently changes it to Sourwolf. It’s not like Derek will find out anyway.

 

* * *

 

 

Derek doesn’t know what’s wrong with him. Asking the kid for his phone number? Is he stupid? What the hell was he thinking?

He wasn’t thinking. He hardly ever thinks when it comes to Stiles, he just does things on instinct and it’s aggravating.

Derek has plans okay? A plan to make sure that Scott doesn’t die and think of his werewolf abilities as a burden that ruined his life.

That’s not how a new beta should feel.

People should see the bite as a gift, because that’s exactly what it is, a gift that only a few people are born with and even fewer people are given.

His mother spent her entire life protecting all werewolves and making sure they all had the best and most normal life possible despite the dangers that come with being a werewolf and in just a few days Scott McCall has reduced this incredible opportunity to nothing more than a big ‘fuck you’ from the universe.

Derek needs to change that.

Only Scott absolutely hates his guts and won’t spend a minute near him unless Stiles forces him to, so, Stiles is his best and only connection to Scott.

It still doesn’t mean he had to ask the guy for his number, seriously, what was the point of that? He could have just followed them to the party and waited until they did something stupid.

Like a normal person.

But it’s not like anything he does around Stiles is ever normal, it’s like his normal demeanor flies out the window whenever the spastic teen is involved.

There’s just something about Stiles that Derek can’t wrap his head around. He knows the kid is smart, that much is obvious, but the way he almost instantly realized what Scott was is unnerving.

Not to mention how accepting he was, no skepticism whatsoever to the fact that his best friend was a werewolf.

And that _Derek_ was a werewolf. It’s one thing to notice something off about your best friend but a complete stranger? The kid had to have been aware of the supernatural before this shit storm happened.

Derek just doesn’t understand how. Stiles is human, or at least, he _seems_ human.

His scent is a bit more earthy than most but given his ADHD Derek wouldn’t be surprised if he spent most of his childhood outside.

Everything about Stiles is confusing and Derek doesn’t know why that affects him so much.

The entire situation is a headache and Stiles is like the throbbing pain that won’t go away. Hence why Derek sometimes gets a bit physical during their interactions.

It’s not like it's Derek’s fault though. The kid should learn to be less confusing if he doesn’t want to be pushed into walls.

The day of the full moon Derek’s phone buzzes with a message from Stiles.

**We’re on our way to the party, if you want to come and not be a creeper following us in your car (shut up I know you do that) the address is 4646 N 22th St**

Derek waits a few minutes before replying, contemplating his options before answering.

**OK**

Stiles sends him a smiley face. Derek blinks.

Who knew a smiley face would be so confusing. What the hell does that even mean? Smiley face. The fuck even is that?

Derek makes sure to arrive well after the party’s in full swing. Everyone is guaranteed to be drunk at this point so they won’t notice Derek in the slightest.

He tries to find Scott and instead stumbles upon a young girl with dark hair covered in his scent. The slight hint of wolfsbane and mountain ash in the undertones of her scent confirm Derek’s suspicions that she’s the Argent girl Scott has been so enamored with.

Stupid kid. He needs to understand who the enemy is before going around and falling in love with the first pretty face he sees. Something like that could get him killed.

The young Argent smells of lust and a lingering scent of fear that Derek knows came from Scott considering she just looks confused. Scott must have started shifting and left before she noticed.

At least the kid has enough common sense to get away from her once his control started slipping.

Derek is about to approach the baffled brunette, best to get her back home before something happens, when a peculiar scent reaches his nose.

Tears.

Not just any tears, _Stiles’_ tears.

What could have happened to cause the human to cry? From what little time Derek has spent with him one thing is for certain, Stiles Stilinski doesn’t like showing weakness, and that includes crying.

Especially in the middle of a party.

Within seconds Derek forgets all about his plan to get Allison home and goes searching for Stiles. He’s got to be around here somewhere.

When he finally spots Stiles the teen has his back pressed against one of the columns that decorate the back of the Martin household while rubbing his eyes aggressively.

“What happened.”

Stiles flails. “Jesus fucking Christ, what is it with you and sneaking up on people like a demonic entity?! And would it kill you to use a question mark? Seriously, who was your first grade English teacher? They should be fired.”

“What. Happened.” Derek’s starting to lose his patience. Does the kid ever shut up?

Stiles gawks, as if _Derek’s_ the one being annoying. “Nothing happened, okay?”

“ _Stiles_.”

“I’m serious!” Stiles proclaims. “It wasn’t real, just an allusion. Someone put wolfsbane in the punch and it’s giving people weird hallucinations. Nothing happened.”

Then silence falls between them again. It’s tense, both of them staring at the other, not wanting to back down.

After another moment Derek speaks up. “Let’s go.” Then he’s marching off through the crowd of drunk teenagers with a confused Stiles struggling to follow behind him.

“What do you mean ‘let’s go’ where are we even going?”

The werewolf doesn’t look back at him as he continues walking passed the maze of teenagers. “Your house. I’m taking you home.”

Stiles stops dead in his tracks - like a freaking idiot - causing Derek to turn around and grab his wrist before pulling him through the front door and into the fresh air.

Finally.

“What about Scott?”

And there he goes with the not shutting up again.

Derek leads them to the Camaro. “Scott’s not here.”  The werewolf gets in the driver’s seat in one smooth motion and places the keys in the ignition.

“What?!” Stiles says as he finally settles into the passenger’s seat. “What do you mean Scott’s not here? He was crazy to spend the night with Allison, he wouldn’t just get up and leave! Unless… oh fuck did Scott ditch me so he could get _laid_?!”

The werewolf turns to Stiles, his face the perfect mixture of _what the fuck_ and _you’re an idiot._

Stiles can’t help but be offended by that face. It was a valid conclusion!

“No Scott isn’t getting laid. He started shifting and left the party before anyone could notice.” Well, at least that’s what Derek hopes happened.

It’s hard to tell whether or not Scott’s still at the party with the overwhelming amount of teenage hormones concentrated in one area. But, if Scott was still at the party when Derek showed up then he would have went straight to Stiles who wasn’t that far away from where he and Allison were undoubtedly making out.

So Derek is fairly positive that Scott left the party all together, he’ll be sure to check the McCall house after taking Stiles home.

Once the Camaro comes to a stop at the front of the Stilinski house, Stiles opens the passenger door but doesn’t leave the car.

“You didn’t have to drive me home.”

Derek gives Stiles a deadpan look. “Was that actually punch that you were drinking?”

Stiles opens his mouth to answer then seems to think better of it and shuts it closed.

“Thought so.” Derek sighs. “Now go home Stiles.”

The teen then stumbles out of the car with all the grace of a newborn fawn and goes home.

Derek shakes his head and wonders how this became his life before making his way to the McCall house.

 

* * *

  

Stiles is still confused as to why Derek felt the need to drive Stiles home. It’s not like Stiles was drunk or anything, he had one drink!

Well, it was laced with wolfsbane and caused him to have an all too real hallucination of his dad blaming him for his mother’s death but Derek doesn’t need to know that little detail.

Point is Stiles wasn’t drunk, he wasn’t even tipsy, so the fact that Derek gave him a ride home was mind boggling. Seriously, why would Derek Hale have the urge to take Stiles home if he didn’t feel it was strictly necessary to avoid instant death?

 It made no sense! 

In the end Stiles decides not to think about it too much, hardly anything about Derek made sense, why should this be any different?

So life went on as Stiles pushed the encounter to the back of his head and focused his attention on more important matters.

Like teaching Scott control. 

Luckily Scott caught on pretty quickly and within a matter of weeks was able to have enough control of his heart rate to not shift when feeling agitated, angry, and – hopefully – lustful. Stiles is still keeping his fingers crossed on that one.

That didn’t keep Stiles from worrying when they had to play their first lacrosse game since Scott gained his wolf-hood. 

It’s one thing to keep his heart rate from escalating during an ordinary day at school and something completely different to keep his heart rate calm in the middle of a lacrosse match where people are purposefully trying to knock you down. 

Even Stiles had trouble with his control during middle school when Scott and him started learning lacrosse together. It was always a mission to keep his abilities hidden from Scott, it is such a huge part of his life and who he is as a person.

Stiles had always been guilty about keeping his supernatural status from Scott but at least before any of this happened Stiles could justify it with having to keep Scott oblivious to the supernatural for the safety of everyone. 

Now everything is different, now Scott’s a werewolf and knows about things like hunters and wolfsbane and kanimas and all the other wonderful gifts one receives when joining the supernatural club.

Stiles should be jumping at the chance to finally reveal the secret he’s kept from Scott for so long. 

But he’s not.

It’s not that he doesn’t want to tell Scott, he just doesn’t know how to tell him. It’s not like he can just go up to Scott all of a sudden and say ‘hey Scotty, so you know how you’re a werewolf now? Surprise! I’m a werebunny!’ 

Yeah… That’d  be a nice conversation to have.

Ever since Stiles was a little kid his mom had always made sure to reinforce the fact that him being a werebunny was never to be revealed, even to Scott.

Werebunnies are like the untold myth of the supernatural world, they’re so rare that only a few select people still know of their existence. Those few being family members of the limited number of werebunnies that still walk the earth. 

The reason werebunnies are so rare is due to them being the only werecreature that can’t be created through the bite. The only way to be a werebunny is by being born as one and since werebunnies are the only werecreatures that can fully shift into their animal form naturally, shifting into their full form coming to them as easily as breathing, it’s no surprise that werebunnies are constantly killed by hunters and big predators mistaking them for actual rabbits.

Over the years werebunnies have evolved to appear like domestic bunnies instead of wild hares like their past ancestors did but the damage was already done.

By the time this beneficial trait was finally acquired the werebunny population in the supernatural world was nearly to the point of extinction during the late 1800s.

Since then werebunnies made sure to keep their supernatural status a secret even from other shifters to ensure their safety, only letting their colonies in on the secret. 

But that just makes Stiles even guiltier because Scott and Melissa have always been part of his colony, colonies being the equivalent to a pack in the werebunny community. Scott’s his brother and Stiles knows Scott considers him a part of his pack but he can’t bring himself to tell Scott what he is.

Besides it going against everything his mom has ever taught him, Stiles isn’t sure of how Scott would react. Scott and him have told each other everything since they were 3 and Stiles knows he’ll feel betrayed when Stiles finally tells him he’s been hiding this since the very beginning.

Scott was bitten a little over a month ago by a rogue alpha and was basically thrown into the world of the supernatural against his will, his life was turned upside down and if Stiles suddenly tells him his best friend has been a werebunny this entire time, it might be too much for him to handle.

Despite him acting like everything is fine and putting on a smile for the world to see Stiles notices the fear hidden within his eyes. Scott feels like a stranger in his own body, learning how to control it all over it again.

Stiles is the only thing that’s stayed the same throughout this entire endeavor and if the werewolf finds out about it before he’s ready things could get dangerous.

He knows he can’t keep it a secret for much longer, Scott will find out eventually, but now is not the time.

Scott needs something to hold onto and Stiles isn’t going to pull the rug from under him while he’s still trying to get back on his feet.

Telling Scott will have to wait for a bit. When Scott’s ready… 

The buzzer on the scoreboard goes off snapping Stiles back into the game. It’s the middle of the third quarter and the team is about to make another play as Stiles watches from his place in the bench.

Now that Scott was in first line Stiles was completely alone on the sidelines. Watching the team wasn’t as fun as it used to be without Scott by his side. 

Sometimes Stiles wishes he could use his abilities to improve his skills on the field like Scott does, but it’s too late for that now. He’s known as one of the worst players on the team and it’s not like someone can just become good at a sport out of nowhere. 

It’s alright though, Stiles doesn’t mind sitting on the bench during games. He just gets a bit lonely.

One of the players from the opposing team knocks Scott down and Stiles is instantly on high alert. 

“You were more helpful on the bench.” The guy sneered before getting into position for the next play. 

Stiles knows that riled Scott up, it’s all over his scent, hopefully he can keep it under control.

The game continues and the same guy keeps tackling Scott down even when it isn’t necessary. He’s purposefully singling Scott out and Stiles knows that Scott is one push away from letting his control slip.

Throughout certain moments of the game Stiles notices Scott’s eyes flash beta gold for a brief moment before returning to their normal dark brown and his nails grow into claws for mere seconds before turning back.

Stiles is a bundle of anxiety and pent up energy by the time the third quarter finally ends. Call him stupid but when he tried out for the lacrosse team Stiles wasn’t expecting to have mini heart attacks every time someone tackled his best friend.

He really should have known better.

Scott is out of the field the moment the third quarter ends, running straight to the locker room.

Stiles quickly chases after him and tries to come up with a plan to help calm Scott down. By the time he reaches the locker room Stiles already has a plan in place.

Find Scott and try to calm him down.

Stiles truly is a genius.

When Stiles enters the locker room he finds Scott fully wolfed out in the middle of the shower room crouched against the far wall.

Why did he ever think it was a good idea to let Scott play this game when the next full moon is only a few days away? He should have known this would happen.

“Hey Scottie, it’s okay buddy, it’s me, Stiles. Remember Stiles? You don’t eat Stiles. Eating Stiles is bad. Never eat Stiles.”

Scott launched at him, slicing the skin of Stiles’ right arm with his claws. It wasn’t deep but werebunnies don’t have the same healing abilities werewolves do so it’ll take a couple hours until the wound fully heals.

The smell of blood in the air seems to snap Scott out of it and next thing Stiles knows he has a beta werewolf kneeling beside him on the floor of the shower room babbling apologies and demanding to see where he had been hurt.

“Scott, it’s fine, you barely broke skin.” 

Scott’s face was ghostly pale with the thought of hurting his friend, Stiles’ reassuring words hardly registering in the midst of his panic. “Oh god I hurt you, I actually physically hurt you. Stiles I’m so sorry! I never meant to do that, I don’t know what came over me. Everything was fine until that guy decided to be a jerk and I kept getting angry but I couldn’t do anything! Then the quarter ended and I thought I was fine but I still felt angry and the next thing I knew I was wolfing out and-”

“Scott.” Stiles interrupted while placing both his hands on Scott’s shoulders in an effort to calm him down. “I’m okay. Breathe.”

The werewolf took a shaky breath and look into Stiles’ eyes searchingly. “But you’re bleeding; I can smell it.” 

“Scott, listen to my heartbeat.” Stiles instructs. “I am fine.”

He makes sure to say the words and slowly as possible, Scott hasn’t gotten the hang of detecting lies just yet and Stiles wants to make sure the werewolf has no doubts about this whatsoever. 

Scott looks up at him with those puppy dog eyes of his that can rival an actually puppy. “You’re really okay?” 

“Did you hear my heart skip?”

The beta shakes his head and Stiles smirks. “Then stop worrying and get back out there, the last quarter is about to start.”

The other teen is hesitant but with a bit more encouragement from Stiles the werewolf is making his way to the field moments later.

Stiles takes a moment to catch his breath. The wound isn’t exactly as small as Stiles made it out to be.

After clumsily wrapping up the wound with cloth from the first aid kit and putting on a long sleeved shirt under his jersey to hide the injury Stiles was about to walk back to the bench when -

“What do you think you’re doing?” 

Stiles nearly hit the ceiling with how high he jump from the sound of Derek’s voice - more like growl - right behind him. “Are you kidding me Derek? Again?! Don’t you know it’s rude to sneak up on people and give them heart attacks? I could have _died_! Bad sourwolf. I’m going to get you a bell one of these days.” 

Derek was ignored him. Like always.

“Answer the question.”

Stiles turned from the older were, fully intending to walk back to the field and warm up his bench - it’s probably feeling cold – when Derek grabbed his arm and slammed him against one of the lockers.

Okay so they’re playing the push Stiles into walls game again. That’s always a fun choice.

When Derek just glares at Stiles with no indication that he has any plans to speak whatsoever, Stiles caves. “I was making my way back to the field. Warming the bench is a very important job you know and you’re distracting me from my very urgent responsibility. What if by the time I get back the bench is cold? All my hard work during this entire game would have been for nothing!” 

Against all odds, Derek glares even _harder_ and wow, okay, those eyebrows look like they’re seriously contemplating killing Stiles. To _death_!

“You know what I meant Stiles. Why the hell did you run after Scott when you knew he was having trouble with his control? Do you _want_ to die?”

“Scott is my brother and I was helping him out! I couldn’t just let him deal with losing control on his own. He needs an anchor!”

Derek’s eyes flash alpha red and Stiles can’t help but feel a sudden sadness at the sight of the eliminating orbs. The last time eyes that color were directed at him they had belonged to his mom.

After the dementia started taking effect his mom started losing herself and Stiles witnessed his mother slipping away from him. The day she passed Stiles lost more than his mother.

He lost his alpha and his anchor.

Seeing Derek possess the same color that his mom did hit a little too close to home.

“Regardless of him needing an anchor or not you can’t run head first into situations like this without thinking. Your recklessness is going to get you killed one day, it already got you hurt. It’s best for everyone if you just stayed away.”

Okay, Stiles can deal with being pushes against walls and ignored and drag around like a rag doll but to be told that he should stay away? That he’s not _needed_ , that right there, is not something Stiles will deal with. He refuses.

“You’re not my alpha, hell, you’re not even Scott’s alpha! You think you can push me against walls and scare me into submission with those red eyes of yours? News flash Derek, I’m not afraid of you. You’re just a beta who was forced to take the alpha title, you don’t know what the fuck you’re doing. Turning teenagers into werewolves? That’s both reckless _and_ stupid, what the fuck gives you the right to tell me what I can and can’t do to help Scott when all you’ve been doing is thinking about yourself!”

Stiles knows he hit a nerve. He can tell by the way Derek’s scent sours and his face turns murderous.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about” Derek snaps. 

“Really?” Stiles prods. “You think I don’t know more betas makes an alpha stronger? You think I don’t know at least the basics of how werewolves work? Then who do you think has been keeping Scott alive and helping him with his control? Tell me Derek, who do you think spends every minute of every day worried that at any moment someone or some _thing_ could come along and kill Scott?! Who do you think it is Derek? Because it sure as hell isn’t you!” 

The grip on Stiles’ arm tightens as Derek’s enraged face gets closer to his. “You think a bit of knowledge about werewolves is enough to keep Scott alive? The kid needs someone who can teach him what it means to be a werewolf, someone that can be there when his control is slipping and not worry about getting hurt.”

The grip on his arm gets even tighter.

“What if next time he doesn’t snap out of it and keeps going? What if next time you don’t have it all under control? What if next time you get seriously hurt or die and Scott gains his control only to find his best friend’s mangled body in front of him? What happens then Stiles? If you seriously cared about Scott then you wouldn’t constantly put yourself in danger because seeing you hurt would rip Scott apart!”

Stiles wants to retort, wants to prove Derek wrong, but he can’t. The grip the werewolf has on him is way too tight for comfort and the last thing he wants to do right now is make Derek even angrier.

Then Derek lets go of Stiles like his hands were burned and takes quite a few steps back.

Before Stiles could utter a single sound Derek is gone.

The werebunny doesn’t understand what to make of the slight hurt he saw hidden in Derek’s eyes. It was subtle but Stiles has always been too observant for his own good.

He doesn’t know what to make of the surge of concern he got for the grumpy werewolf either. Emotions are weird.

When Stiles finally leaves the locker room the last quarter is almost over. It’ll be only a few minutes before the team all gather in the locker room to change.

Seeing as there is no way that Stiles can change in the locker room surrounded by his teammates without any of them noticing his bandaged arm that certainly wasn’t there before the game Stiles decides he’ll just go home. 

After sending a quick text to Scott telling him that he’s leaving early to make dinner for his dad Stiles hops into the Jeep and quickly drives home.

Once he’d taken a shower and settled on simply ordering some pizza - his dad was due for a cheat day anyway - he shifts into his full form and starts sprinting towards the preserve.

It’s been far too long since he shifted fully and stretched out his legs. 

Stiles isn’t able to run as fast as he usually would due to his injured arm but running on three paws isn’t so bad.

He makes sure to stick around the edge of the preserve, far enough from any remaining prying eyes but close enough to civilization that any lurking predators won’t risk being seen.

Running through the forests like this was exhilarating. It’s been so long since he last shifted that his senses are practically singing with finally being released.

Stiles has always loved shifting, it was one of his favorite parts of being a werebunny.

He could feel the soft crunch of leaves under his padded paws, hear the blended noise of birds and squirrels around him, and smell the crisp grass as he zips through the trees. 

Stiles is completely in his element. Nothing can keep him from enjoying a nice, peaceful, run.

A growl resonates from across the preserve. 

_Oh god_

Without missing a beat Stiles kicks into over drive and sprints away from the sound as fast as his little paws could carry him.

The sound wasn’t close, not at all. In fact, the only reason Stiles was able to hear it was because of his incredibly advanced hearing. A werebunny’s hearing is easily ten times better than that of an alpha werewolf and Stiles is thanking every god and deity he could think of for gifting him with such good hearing.

He really isn’t in the mood to be eaten right now.

After a while he can hear something coming his way and _fast_. Oh fuck he’s being chased by a monster in the mood for some rabbit stew!

The creature gets closer and closer to Stiles and even though the werebunny knows his persecutor can’t see him due to the amount of distance between them, that distance is quickly fading away and Stiles isn’t going to take any chances.

He finds a small bush and hides under it, making a tiny makeshift burrow before staying completely still. Maybe whatever’s chasing him will run past him and Stiles will be able to escape back home without being seen.

It isn’t until a few moments later that Stiles finally sees what has been chasing him.

Derek Hale. Stiles was being chased by Derek freaking Hale. The same Derek Hale that pushed Stiles against the locker just a few moments ago, the same Derek Hale that threatened to rip Stiles’ throat out with his teeth, the same Derek Hale –

The same Derek Hale that is currently looking straight at the bush he is hiding under. 

He’s dead. This is it. This is how it all ends for Stiles Stilinski. Snatched by the hands of a sourwolf and made into a werebunny protein shake.

Stiles never thought he’d be as terrified of a blender as he is at this very moment. It was truly horrific. 

In the middle of his internal panic Stiles failed to realize that Derek was making his way towards his little hide out until he felt Derek’s hands touch his fur.

Stiles’ heart rate skyrocketed as he tried to escape from the werewolf’s claws. One of his paws gets caught in the thorned branches of the bush and refuses to budge as he tugs and pulls mercilessly.

It just had to be his already injured paw didn’t it? 

“Hey, easy there, calm down little guy.”

If Stiles had the ability to scoff in this form, he would.

_How do you expect me to calm down when you’re going to eat me?! Your little mind games may work on the other unsuspecting bunnies but not me sourwolf! Not me! I know what you’re – wait, what are you doing?_

Derek gently holds Stiles’ injured paw which the mean bush has decided to imprison for all eternity and slowly untangles it from the mess of branches.

Stiles attempts to sprint away but ends up tripping over his own ears giving Derek the opportunity to snatch Stiles up and cradle him to his chest, chuckling as he did so.

Asshole. It’s not like it's Stiles’ fault he has long ears that are always in the way of practically everything, he’s a victim!

“What are you even doing all the way out here? A little fluff ball like you shouldn’t be running around the woods, it’s dangerous. I’m sure your owners are worried sick.”

_Owners?! Who are you calling owners?! Stiles Stilinski is owned by no one! How dare you even insinuate such a thing?_

The werewolf sniffs him slightly and furrows his brows of doom in confusion. It’s strangely adorable. “You smell like Stiles, but, Stiles doesn’t have a bunny does he? No, I would have noticed…”

Next thing Stiles knew he was being lifted up until he was at Derek’s eye level. Derek just stared at him for a long time.

He shrugged after a moment passed. “Guess I’ll keep you for tonight. You should rest your paw.”

Oh no.

 

* * *

 

When Derek opened the door to the loft with the small bunny in his hand he was at a loss of what to do.

How do you even help a little bunny heal?

Food. Food is always a good option. The bunny is probably hungry. What do bunnies eat anyway? He knows he doesn’t have any carrots at his disposal. Maybe he should go buy some?

After a quick search through google Derek finds out that bunnies eat fresh fruits and vegetables along with hay and grass.

A few minutes of careful deliberation and Derek places a small plate with a few chopped apple slices, some celery leaves, and a couple of blackberries in front of the small creature.

The bunny seems hesitant but after a minute or two begins to eat the food Derek prepared for him.

The werewolf would be lying if he said he didn’t find the tiny animal adorable, but who wouldn’t? The bunny has white fur with dark brown spots all around and long droopy ears that almost touch the ground along with a tiny nose that never stops twitching.

Derek almost wants to keep him. Almost.

His owners are undoubtedly worried by now, it would be cruel for Derek to keep him when he clearly has a family.

Derek feeds the bunny the apple slices and to his surprise the little ball of fluff eats from Derek’s hand almost instantly.

The alpha has always had a soft spot for animals but this little bunny has wormed his way into Derek’s heart faster than most. He’s already regretting having to give the bunny back in the morning.

Once the bunny has eaten all the apple slices Derek heads to the upstairs bathroom where the first aid kit is and grabs some bandaging cloth and disinfectant before walking back to the kitchen where the little bunny is hopping around lazily on the counter.

Derek gently cleans out the wound and carefully wraps the white cloth around the bunny’s front paw. At the first sign of the creature’s discomfort Derek instantly starts taking the bunny’s pain.

The small animal practically melts as Derek takes his pain and becomes so utterly still that the werewolf is convinced it has fallen asleep.

He couldn’t have been more wrong.

The moment Derek finished patching up the bunny’s injured paw the small fur ball suddenly turned into a tiny spark of energy. He was hopping around and sniffing things like he made it his own personal mission to investigate every each of Derek’s loft.

The bunny never moved too far away from him though, never moving further than from where Derek could instantly get to him.

He probably wanted to make sure that Derek could take his pain again as quickly as possible.

After a bit more rummaging around the bunny seemed to have found something that peaked his interest.

Derek turns to see what it is that grabbed the little cotton ball’s attention and finds the bunny staring at a burned family photo that Derek keeps on his night stand.

The photo shows Laura holding Derek in a headlock when he was 12 while she was 16 with both his parents laughing behind them, his father holding a 7 year old Cora on his lap.

It was one of the few things that managed to survive the fire.

“That’s my family.” Derek explains and he crouched down next to the bunny before picking both him and the photo up. “Was my family actually, they died in a fire years ago.”

The werewolf makes his way to the couch and sets the bunny on his chest as he lays down and stares at the image before him. It’s been so long since he last saw it. Laura was usually the one that made him look at things like this, she never wanted him to forget the good times.

Derek doesn’t feel like he deserves to remember the good times after everything that happened, after everything he _let_ happen.

As if sensing where his thoughts were going the small bunny nuzzled Derek’s cheek. The werewolf let a soft smile grace his lips and felt himself reach up to pet the bunny’s soft fur.

He doesn’t know how long they stayed like that, he just remembers running his fingers through cotton like fur until there was nothing but darkness.

Then he woke up the next morning to find that where the bunny had previously been laying on his chest last night was empty and that there was a very shirtless Stiles standing in the middle of the loft in nothing but a pair of Derek’s old sweat pants looking like a deer caught in headlights.

It takes .2 seconds for everything to finally make sense in his head.

“Surprise?” Stiles says timidly while doing jazz hands motions with both hands simultaneously.

Derek doesn’t know what else he expected.

Stiles has no idea why he thought this was a good plan. Staying inside an alpha werewolf’s den longer than necessary while said alpha was asleep was never a good idea, even if the reason he stayed was to find something to cover his nakedness.

So yeah, Stiles was prepared to have his throat ripped out by Derek’s teeth right now. He was looking forward to it actually, maybe he’ll finally be put out of his misery.

What Stiles wasn’t prepared for was for Derek to sigh and slump back on the couch while uttering “of course you’re a werebunny” as if it was the most inconvenient thing on the planet.

Now that’s just rude.

“What do you mean ‘of course you’re a werebunny’!? I’ll have you know-"

Derek groaned. “Stiles. Shut up. Come back to bed.”

"And you say _that_ \- quite a lot actually, I’m beginning to think that’s your default word choice when I speak, telling me to shut up and then asking me to come back to b-bed -” Stiles stuttered to a stop. “C-come back to bed?”

“Yes stiles, come back to bed. It’s too early to be awake.” Derek grumbled.

“But that’s not a bed. It’s a couch.”

The werewolf barely acknowledged him as he rubbed his face sleepily against the pillow. “Same thing.”

“And you’re in this couch. The couch that you are telling me to come back to. You are currently lying on that couch. Right now.”

“Yes Stiles, you’ve established that. Come back.”

Okay, what? Surely this isn’t real. There is no way this is real. Stiles refuses to believe this is real. “Why?”

Derek rolls his eyes as if Stiles is being the biggest annoyance ever. “You’re warm.”

Stiles doesn’t know what to do. How does anyone know what to do when Derek Hale tells you to ‘come back to bed’ - which is a couch in the middle of his loft by the way - because ‘you’re warm’ seriously, how do anyone know how to respond to that?!

“You can’t… you… you can’t _do that_ ! What the fuck Hale?! How do you tell a guy you just found out is actually a werebunny to ‘come back to bed’ as if it’s nothing!? You don’t do that! You just… you just _don’t_ , it’s confusing as hell.”

“Stiles.”

“What?!” Stiles snapped. “What could you possibly say to me right now to make me more confused than I already am? What game are you playing Derek? Because I don’t think I got the memo.”

“Stiles.” There’s the growl Stiles knew and feared! “Come here before I rip your throat out.”

“No. We are not doing the intimation thing again, you are going to stop confusing me and talk like a regular human being.”

Derek gave him a look, the exasperated tired look that Stiles knew all too well.

The werebunny refused to back down but after a minute under Derek’s blazing glare he begrudgingly sits on the edge of the couch, as far from Derek as possible.

Derek would have none of that.

The werewolf grabs Stiles’ uninjured arm and maneuvers him until the werebunny has his back pressed against the inside of the couch with their chests pressed together.

“Sleep.” Derek mumbled tiredly.

A moment passes and neither of them say a word. Derek has his eyes closed even though Stiles knows he’s not asleep. Looks like it’s up to Stiles to bring up the important questions.

Like always.

Stiles fidgets slightly under the werewolf’s hold, Derek is draped over him like a blanket. A nice, warm, very firm blanket. That Stiles wants to stay curled up in forever.

God damn it even his thoughts are confusing him!

“Soooo we’re not going to talk about this then? This thing we are doing, on this couch, right now. We’re not talking about it?”

Derek growls.

Stiles huffs and rolls his eyes. “Fine, whatever, why would we talk about the fact that you’re cuddling me when I thought you hated me all this time. Not you that’s who! Yep, nothing strange going on whatsoever.”

The alpha finally lifts up his head from where it was previously hidden in Stiles’ neck. Stiles refuses to think about why he felt a sudden disappointment when the warmth went away.

After a moment of silence passes between them and Stiles begins to think that Derek is just going to stare at him until Stiles gives up, the alpha lifts his hand and lightly touches Stiles’ nose with his index finger.

Stiles blinks. Did he just…

“Did you just _boop_ my nose?” The werebunny asks, completely shocked at Derek’s audacity.

Derek doesn’t even have the decency to answer him, just shrugs.

“No, no, no, no, no I don’t think you understand the implications of what you just did. You _booped my nose_. That is the one blind spot us werebunnies have when we fully shift. You can’t do that Derek, that’s like me rubbing your belly or something! What the fuck?!”

The alpha looks him in the eyes and Stiles doesn’t know what to make of the slight nervousness he can see in the werewolf’s eyes. “I don’t hate you.”

Alright Stiles is officially hearing things. “What?”

Derek scowls but it looks more pouty and cute than it probably should. Stiles is probably taking too much adrenal.

“You’re telling me that after all the times you’ve pushed me against walls and smashed my head into steering wheels and threatened to rip my throat out with your teeth, you don’t hate me? That’s what you’re saying. That is the meaning to the words that came out of your mouth just now.”

The werewolf’s scowl deepens and dutifully looks at everything in the room that isn’t Stiles. “What else was I supposed to do?” Derek grumbles and _what?_ Did he really just say that?

Stiles stuttered over his answer. “W-what else were you supposed to do? Oh, I don’t know, maybe _not_ make me feel like you were constantly deciding whether or not to eat me? Or, possibly, call me crazy, _not_ cause me bodily harm?”

“But you never listen! Intimidation is the only thing that works with you, whenever I tried to use other tactics you would completely ignore everything I said and do something stupid anyway. You’re stubborn and reckless and always getting hurt in the crossfire. I couldn’t stand seeing you in pain so I forced you to listen the only way I knew how.”

Stiles just… Stiles can’t take that kind of information. Here he is, in Derek Hale’s loft, the same Derek Hale that both terrified him and made him question his sexuality, with Derek Hale telling him that the only reason he used brute force on his this entire time was so that Stiles would stop getting hurt.

His brain might be malfunctioning.

They stay like that for a long time, Stiles practically laying on top of Derek’s chest as they both stare at each other, waiting to see who breaks the silence first.

Then Stiles gets possessed by some horny ghost or something because next thing he knows his lips are on Derek’s and _oh my god_ it feels amazing.

Derek’s lips are surprisingly soft and his stubble scratches Stiles in all the right places and Stiles is pretty sure he never wants this to end.

Until he realizes that Derek isn’t kissing him back and quickly pulls away before stumbling off the couch.

“Derek I’m so-”

The werewolf cuts him off by smashing their lips together once more and kissing Stiles with such hunger that Stiles has to hold onto the alpha’s shoulders to keep himself upright.

It comes to an end all too soon a moment later with the two of them gasping for breath just inches from each other’s mouths.

As expected, Stiles can’t keep his mouth shut for long. “So, is this like a thing now? The kissing and stuff? I liked the kissing. We should keep kissing, like, all the time. So much kissing. Does that make us boyfriends? I mean, it’s okay if it’s not, I’m good if you don’t ever want to do that ever again. In fact I-”

“ _Yes_ , Stiles, we’re boyfriends. Can’t you be quiet for a single second?”

Stiles grins up at him. “Nope. Get used to it big guy, you’re not going to experience another quiet moment for _long_ time.”

The werewolf sighed in exasperation but, now that he thought about it, that didn’t sound that bad.

 

* * *

 

It’s been four months since Stiles and Derek started dating and things were going surprisingly well.

They were currently watching a movie with the rest of the pack, Stiles had demanded they have a pack night once a month to improve pack bonds and Derek easily agreed.

It took the pack a while to wrap their heads around Stiles being a werebunny but after the initial shock had worn off the teasing started almost immediately.

It was all in good nature and Stiles just huffed in annoyance whenever they poked fun at him for turning into a tiny bunny with a fluffy tail and an adorable twitchy nose.

Scott had been stoked when he found out that Stiles was a werebunny despite all of Stiles’ fears that his best friend would feel betrayed and hurt. It didn’t take long for Scott to fully settle into being a member of the Hale Pack after Stiles and Derek became boyfriends.

Scott was still uneasy around the alpha but wherever Stiles went the young beta wasn’t far behind. Stiles and him were a package deal and everyone knew it.

Similarly, everyone knew that Stiles was Derek’s and Derek was Stiles’, both of them being obsessed over making sure that they were saturated in each other’s scents.

Erica made a show of pinching her nose as she walked through the front door of the loft holding numerous boxes of pizza. “Gross, get a room love birds. You’re going to infect the food with all of your happy pheromones.”

“Please, as if we’re anything compared to you and Boyd.” Stiles commented while getting two slices of pizza and stuffing it in his mouth. Joyfully eating away at the triangular slice of heaven from his spot on Derek’s lap.

Erica flipped her hair in indignation. “I’ll have you know that me and my hubby are very tasteful and dignified when it comes to such public affections.”

The alpha gave her an unimpressed look. “Just yesterday you were climbing him like a tree.”

“It was away from prying eyes.”

“It was in between the clothing racks in the mall.”

Erica rolled her eyes. “As if anyone goes over there anyway.”

Derek could go on all day but decides to give up before this goes any further. He’s just wasting his breath anyway, Erica doesn’t know the definition of being wrong.

Instead he tightens his arms around Stiles’ waist and resumes rubbing his face all over the back of the teen’s neck. He lets himself get lost in his scent, the scent of freshly fallen rain and spring with a hint of spice.

Derek could keep scenting Stiles forever and never get bored of the smell.

He realizes then, that he never wants to spend a day without smelling this captivating aroma. He wants to smell it on his skin, wake up to it every morning, fall asleep to it every night, and have it soaked into every part of the loft.

He wants Stiles in every way, wants to cherish him and love him forever.

When the rest of the pack leaves Derek doesn’t let go of Stiles, just stays there relishing his scent and how much he never wants to spend another day without him.

Stiles doesn’t seem to want to move either, simply lets Derek scent mark him without even so much as fidgeting.

The alpha isn’t even aware of the words “I love you” escaping his lips until he feels Stiles’ breath hitch and looks up to see the teen staring at him in awe with a softness to his smile that Derek has never witnessed before.

With a quick kiss to Derek’s lips Stiles whispers “I love you too” before wrapping his arms around Derek’s shoulders and nuzzling the werewolf’s neck.

Derek has never felt more at home.

 

    

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for reading! Please leave comments and kudos <3


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